Apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetables

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetables comprising a moving receptacle means for receiving the vegetables, means for automatically placing the vegetables onto the moving receptacle, means for automatically orienting the vegetables on the receptacle wherein the vegetables are horizontally disposed such that each end of the vegetable extends beyond the end of the receptacle and means for trimming the extended ends of the vegetables.

PATENTEUNUY 23 197| 3.621.900

SHEET 2 0F 4 FIG. 2

PATENTEUuuv 2a Isn SHEE 3 UF 4 APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY ORIENTING ANDTRIMMING VEGIETABLES FIELD OF THE INVENTION DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ARTIn the processing of fresh fruits and vegetables, it is necessary toremove the less desirable top portion or crown and the root portion.Heretofore, it has been the general practice to employ semiautomaticmachines for accomplishing this result. One such machine is disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 2,961,023, issued to Emmanuel F. Boyer. In this patent, avegetable is placed by hand in a conveyor belt which then passes betweentwo circular blades which trim the top and root portion of thevegetable. Because of the critical positioning of the blade, it isnecessary to orient the vegetable by hand on the conveyor belt in orderthat the proper portions are trimmed. This is a slow procedure and isquite dangerous. Moreover, the amount of the vegetable that is removeddepends on the skill of the operator and frequently too much or toolittle of the vegetable is removed.

The second type of machine utilized in the fruit and vegetableprocessing field is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,092, l 60, issued toKenneth Hartman, and in U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,788, issued to TheodoreArmstrong. ln both of these patents, manual orientation ofthe fruit orvegetable has been eliminated by the use of a vibrating conveyor and thereliance on gravitational force to position the fruit or vegetable.However, both of these apparatuses are unsuccessful when used to trimthe tops and bottoms of the vegetables or fruits since the machinesdisclosed in these patents can only be utilized to split the fruit orvegetable in half and cannot be modified to trim the ends of the fruitor vegetable.

A third type of trimmer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,122,189, issuedto Herbert Edde. This machine requires spikes located along a conveyorbelt to hold the fruit or vegetable in place for cutting. Although suchdevices have served the purpose, they have not proved entirelysatisfactory under all conditions of service.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The general purpose of this invention is toprovide a completely automatic vegetable trimmer which embraces all ofthe advantages of similarly employed trimmers and possesses none of theaforedescribed disadvantages. To attain this, the present apparatusutilized a receptacle means for receiving and holding the vegetables, ameans for automatically placing the vegetables onto the receptacle suchthat the vegetable is oriented horizontally so that each end of thevegetable extends beyond the side of the receptacle and a means fortrimming the extended ends from the vegetable.

Therefore, an object of the invention is the provision of an apparatusfor automatically orienting and trimming a fruit or vegetable.

Another' object is to provide an apparatus for trimming a fruit orvegetable which is fully automatic and does not require humanassistance.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus fororienting and trimming fruits or vegetables automatically and which canaccommodate a wide range of sizes of fruit or vegetables.

Still another object is to provide an apparatus which can orient andtrim the top and bottom of the fruit or vegetable simultaneously.

Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of anapparatus for orienting and trimming the root ends and stems of an onionthat is characterized by simplicity, operation, and maintenance.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an automaticmachine capable of trimming the root ends and stems from an onion moreuniformly and more rapidly than has been possible in the past.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this inventionwill be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood byreference to the following detailed description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. l is a perspective view of thevegetable orienting and trimming apparatus.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the vegetable receptacle means used in theapparatus of FIG. l.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the belt shown in FIG. l.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the conveyor belt and knives utilized in thevegetable trimming machine of FIG. l.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view partly in section showing the vibratorutilized in the embodiment shown in FIG. l.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of theautomatic vegetable trimming apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a side view ofthe apparatus shown in FIG. 6.

portion of the conveyor DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTReferring now to the drawings, FIGS. l and 6 illustrate two differentembodiments of an orienting and trimming machine for carrying out thesteps of the method set forth below.

Broadly, the method comprises automatically loading the vegetables to betrimmed onto a carrier, vibrating the carrier so as to cause thevegetables to fall due to gravity, collecting the vegetables in acontinuously moving receptacle, vibrating the receptacle so as to causethe vegetables to be horizontally disposed, such that each end of thevegetables extends beyond the receptacle, holding the vegetable rmly inthe receptacle after the vegetable is horizontally disposed withextended ends, and trimming the horizontally extended ends.

This method of automatically orienting vegetables and fruits will bemore clearly understood when taken in conjunction with two preferredembodiments for carrying out the method as shown in FIGS. l through 7.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference charactersdesignate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views,there is shown in FIG. l an apparatus l0 for orienting and trimmingvegetables automatically. The apparatus comprises a frame ll having amovable conveyor means 30 mounted thereon. The conveyor means 30automatically orients the vegetables in the proper fashion for trimmingby circular knife blades and 8l. Vegetables are removed from feed hopper12 by feed elevator 14. Feed elevator 14 may be any suitable type ofconveying means such as a conventional conveyor belt. Elevator geartrain 16 drives the feed elevator 14 in the direction of the arrow. Asthe vegetable reaches the top of the elevator 14 it drops into feedervibrator 20. Feeder vibrator 20 is merely a conventional receptaclemeans having an open end and attached to the receptacle means is anyconventional vibrator (not shown). The feeder vibrator 20 receives thevegetables and due to the vibrations. causes the vegetables to drop byforce of gravity onto vegetable conveyor 30. An adjustable backstop orplate 22 is provided to prevent the vegetables from falling off thevegetable conveyor 30 during loading. It can thus be seen that vegetableelevator 14 provides a means for automatically loading the vegetableconveyor 30.

Referring also to FIGS. 2 and 3, momentarily, the construction ofvegetable conveyor 30 is clearly shown. Vegetable conveyor 30 is motordriven, as will be later explained. The vegetable conveyor is comprisedof a link chain 39 which rides along a rail 63 and sprockets 37 and 7l,Vegetable conveyor 30 further comprises vegetable orienting pockets 3lplaced upon link chain 39. The vegetable orienting pockets 31 areattached to a bracket 33 by any suitable fastening means. A depression32 is located within vegetable orienting pocket 31.

lllllllllln The shape of the depression is designed to correspond to theshape of the vegetable to be trimmed. Depending upon the vegetable,differently shaped depressions 32 are utilized. Brackets 33 are thenconnected to a link chain 39. The vegetable orienting pockets 31 arearranged on the chain in such a manner as to be slightly spaced apartfrom each other. In a preferred embodiment, the pockets 31 may be spacedoneeighth inch apart from each other, the length of each pocket may bel"/s inches and distance from the center of one pocket 3l to the centerof the next pocket 3l on the chain may be 2 inches. In the embodimentshown in FIG. l, a return conveyor 40 is provided. Any vegetables whichslide off vegetable orienting pockets 3l land on return conveyor 40, andreturn to the feed hopper 12. The direction of movement of the returnconveyor 40 is shown by the arrow in FIG. l;

Vegetable conveyor continually is in motion, and as the vegetables areplaced within depressions 32 of vegetable orienting pockets 31, thevegetables proceed in the direction of the spaced rotating knives 80 and8l as shown by the arrow. One or more vibrators are placed under rail 63and link chain 39. These vibrators 60 are conventional vibrators andcause the vegetable to orient itself within the vegetable orientingpockets 3l. Due to the shape of the pocket, conforming to the shape ofthe vegetable, the vegetable will always orient itself in such a manneras to have its ends hanging over the edge of vegetable orienting pockets31. The placement of these vibrators 60 are more clearly shown in FIG.5. Vibrator 60 causes rail 63 and chain 39 traveling along rail 63 tovibrate and thus vegetable orienting pockets 31 are caused to vibrate.It will be recognized by one skilled in the art that any conventionalvibrator may be utilized, and any number of vibrators may be employed.

As vegetable conveyor 30 proceeds, the vegetable within the vegetableorienting pockets 3l soon moves under a holddown belt 50. The holddownbelt is driven by a conventional pulley arrangement comprising V-shapedpulleys 51 and 53. The purpose of the holddown belt 50 is to maintainthe vegetable in its proper position for cutting, with the endsextending over both sides of the vegetable orienting pockets 3l. Theproper positioning of the vegetable at this point is clearly shown inthe center vegetable orienting pocket of FIG. 3. The vegetable thenproceeds between circular cutting blades 80 and 8l, and the ends aretrimmed. Referring now to FIG. 4, the cutting mechanism is more clearlyshown. The vegetable placed in vegetable orienting pocket 3l proceedsunder holddown belt 50. A spring biasing mechanism 86 is utilized tocontrol knife blade ski 88 and 89 which adjusts each knife assembly 80and 81 for various lengths of vegetables. Circular blades 80 and 8l aremotor driven and trim both the root end and the top end of thevegetable. The trimmed vegetable then proceeds along the vegetableconveyor 30 and drops into a suitable receptacle means 24 shown in FIG.l. It is obvious to one skilled in the art that this apparatus shown inFIG. l can operate continually and automatically so long as untrimmedvegetables are present in feed hopper l2. The above descriptiongenerally outlines the functioning of the vegetable orienting andtrimming apparatus 10.

ln the preferred embodiment shown, only two motors are necessary` Afirst motor 62 is utilized to drive all conveyor belts and gear trainmeans except for those directed to the cutting blades 80 and 8l. Cuttingblades 80 and 8l are driven by a motor 83. It would be obvious, thateach conveyor may have a separate motor associated with it. However, inthe preferred embodiment only two motors are required. The motor 62drives a sprocket 65 which is connected to a conventional link chain 68which turns a sprocket 66. Sprocket 66 is connected to a sprocket 7lwhich drives conveyor link chain 39. So long as motor 62 remains on,vegetable conveyor 30 will continually rotate in the direction shown bythe arrow in FIG. l. Link chain 68 turns sprocket 67 which is connectedto pulley 55. Pulley 55 is connected by a belt 56 to pulley 57. Pulley57 powers holddown belt 50 through a conventional pulley arrangement.The relative speeds of vegetable con- Annu veyor 30 and holddown pulley50 may be regulated by changing the diameters of the associatedsprockets, gears and pulleys described above.

As vegetable conveyor 30 rotates, a sprocket 37 is rotated. Thissprocket 37 is connected to gear 36 and sprocket 18 by an axle 38. Gear36 is an engagement with a gear 46 connected by axle 47 to a sprocket44. As gear 36 rotates, gear 46 will rotate in an opposite direction.This rotation is transmitted to sprocket 44. Sprocket 44 is connected toa sprocket 43 by a conventional link chain 42. As sprocket 44 rotates,sprocket 43 will also rotate thereby causing return conveyor 40 torotate in a direction opposite to that of vegetable conveyor 30. Thiswill then cause any vegetables present on return conveyor 40 to dropinto the feed hopper 12. The rotation of gear 36 also causes sprocket 18to rotate. Sprocket 18 in turn is connected to a sprocket 17 by a linkchain 19. Sprocket 17 causes feed elevator 14 to rotate and thereby tocarry the vegetables from feed hopper l2 to feeder vibrator 20automatically. Motor 62 is controlled by a conventional control panel(not shown) which comprises an on-off motor switch directly associatedwith motor 62. lt is recognized by one skilled in the art that therelative speeds for return conveyor 40 and feed elevator 14 aredependent upon the speed of motor 62 as well as the ratios of theassociated sprockets and gears described above.

Circular cutting blades and 8l are controlled by motor 83. Motor 83 is ahigh-speed motor and is connected to the blade by a conventional pulleyarrangement generally designated in FIG. 1 as numeral 85. Anyconventional pulley system may be utilized to cause the cutting bladesto rotate.

Feeder vibrator 20 in a preferred embodiment is a receptacle which mayvibrate between 0 and 3,600 vibrations per minute. Vibrator 60 ispreferably a vibrator which can vibrate between O and 7,200 vibrationsper minute. The frequencies of these vibrators are adjusted by aconventional control means on the control panel (not shown). Thefrequency of vibration is determined experimentally based upon theweight of the vegetables to be trimmed.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. l through 5 has found great success in theonion field. Automatic vegetable orienting and trimming apparatus l0 isvery easily adaptable to be utilized to trim an onion. Generally, thereare two size grades of onions. A first grade which ranges in sizebetween threefourths of an inch and ll/a inches, and a second size whichranges between 1% and 1% inches. By designing two differently shapedpockets, both of these sizes may be accommodated. The pockets 3l aredesigned such that the vegetable becomes horizontally disposed when itis inserted in the pocket. For example, when short onions are beingtrimmed, the depression 32 in vegetable orienting pocket 31 is 1% incheswide, l 5/16 inches long, and around a 2-inch center. A suitable sizefor the blade 80 and 8l, is 6 inches in diameter. However, anyconventional blade may be utilized so long as it comes in contact withthe vegetable passing along on the conveyor. When the larger grade ofonion is being trimmed, the depression 32 will be slightly longer andcutting blades 80 and 81 will be set farther apart. Roller chain 39 maybe a doublepitch roller chain, having a l-inch pitch. Utilizing thisparticular chain enables the vegetable orienting pockets to be spaced atthe appropriate distances.

The chart below lists the dimensions of the component parts of vegetableorienting and trimming apparatus 10 when utilized as an onion trimmer.These dimensions are for illustration only and do not constitute alimitation to the inventive concept.

Motor 62 Vs H.P.-35 r.p.m. Gearhcad Motor 63 l,720 rpm.

Vibrator 60 ()-7,2(J0 v.p.m4

Feeder Vibrator 20 0-.`l.600 v.p.m.

Sprocket I7 No. of Teeth 20 Sprocket I8 No4 ofTeeth 2() Sprocket 37 No.of Teeth 35 Sprocket 43 No. Of Teeth l2 Sprocket 44 No4 of Teeth 30Sprocket 65 No. of Teeth l() Sprocket 66 No. of Teeth 30 It has beenfound with the above embodiment, that 85 to 90 percent of all pocketsalong vegetable conveyor 30 are filled automatically. This high degreeof reliability eliminates the necessity of utilizing an operator to handload the conveyor belt. F urthermore, the vibrating means 60 underneathvegetable conveyor 30 causes the vegetable to be placed exactly in thecenter of vegetable orienting pocket 31, thereby enabling each vegetableto be trimmed exactly in the same manner as every other vegetable. Onlya predetermined amount of root or top is removed from the vegetable bythe blades. This amount is determined by the space set between knifeblades 80 and 81 and the length of vegetable extending over the knifeblade skis 88 and 89. The knife assemblies adjust individually for thelength of onion protruding on either side of orienting cup 3l by thepushing out on skis 88 and 89 by springs 87 and 88 as shown in FIG. 4.The spaces between the skisand knife blades may be changed for each typeof vegetable used. By utilizing a return conveyor 40, there is no wasteinvolved in the process since all vegetables which do not proceed alongthe vegetable conveyor 30 are automatically returned to feed hopper l2.Consequently, by utilizing this apparatus, or a similar apparatus, anautomatic means for trimming vegetables is available. In summation, theoperation of vegetable orienting and trimming apparatus l is extremelysimple in concept` The vegetables are dumped into feed hopper 12, feedelevator 141 feeds the onions automatically into vibrator feeder 20. Thespeed of feed elevator 14 is set to feed a few more vegetables than isactually necessary to keep all the vegetable orienting pockets 3l full.Adjustable backstop 22 helps position the vegetables in the vegetableorienting pockets 3l. The vegetables that are surplus and fall off thevegetable orienting pockets 3l are returned to hopper l2 on the returnconveyor 40. Vegetables proceeding in the vegetable orienting pockets 31are oriented by the rail vibrator 6l) and the shape of the pockets so asto be horizontally disposed with ends extending before reaching theholddown belt 50. Just before the vegetables reach the knives 8l and 82,they are held firmly in place for cutting by the holddown belt 50. Bothends of the vegetable are then cut off and they proceed to the end wherethey drop off into receptacle 24.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show an alternative embodiment for a vegetable orientingand trimming apparatus. The function of vegetable orienting and trimmingapparatus 100 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is very similar to that of theabove-described apparatus 10. Substantially, the only difference is thatvegetable orienting and trimming apparatus 100 contains a V-shaped framewhich passes through an aperture 113 in feed hopper 112. By utilizingthis construction, no feed elevator is required. Vegetable conveyor 30passes through feed hopper 112 and the vegetables are automaticallyplaced in the vegetable orienting pockets 31. A vibrator 60 is utilizedin conjunction with conveyor 30 to properly orient the onions as isdescribed above in connection with vegetable orienting and trimmingmachine 10. Due to the fact that the onions are placed directly uponconveyor 30, it is not necessary to utilize a return conveyor as wasutilized in the above-described embodiment. Furthermore, the embodimentshown in FIG. 6 only requires one vibrator 6U. Since hopper 112 feedsthe vegetables onto conveyor 30, directly without the necessity ofutilizing a vibrator, all other features of vegetable orienting andtrimming apparatus 101) are identical to vegetable orienting andtrimming apparatus l0, shown in FIGS. l through 5. lt will be recognizedby one skilled in the art, that the loading means in both embodimentsare completely interchangeable.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing disclosurerelates to only twopreferred embodiments of the invention, and thatnumerous modifications or ,alterations may be made therein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetablescomprising:

a plurality of receptacle means mounted on a continuous horizontalconveyor means for randomly receiving and holding said vegetables;

means for automatically placing said vegetables into said receptaclemeans;

means for orienting said vegetables in each of said receptacle meanswherein said vegetables are horizontally disposed such that each end ofsaid vegetable extends beyond said receptacle means, said orientingmeans comprising a means for vibrating said vegetables in saidreceptacle means; and

means for trimming said extended ends from said vegetables. l

2. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetables asin claim 1 wherein:

said receptacle means comprises a depression and wherein said depressionis shaped such that the most stable positions for said vegetables ishorizontal in orientation.

3` An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetables asin claim 2 wherein the shape of said depression generally conforms withthe shape of said vegetable.

4. An apparatus for automatically orienting as in claim 3 wherein saidreceptacle means are interchangeable so as to accommodate vegetables ofvarying sizes and shapes.

5. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetables asin claim l further comprising:

means for firmly holding said vegetable in said receptacle means aftersaid vegetable is orientated.

6. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetablescomprising:

receptacle means for receiving and holding said vegetables, saidreceptacle means comprising a depression generally shaped to conformwith the shape of said vegetables such that the most stable position forsaid vegetable is horizon tal in orientation;

means for automatically randomly placing said vegetables into saidreceptacle means;

first means for vibrating said vegetables during said automatic placing;

second means for vibrating said vegetables in said receptacle whereinsaid vegetables are horizontally disposed such that each end of saidvegetable extends beyond said receptacle means;

conveying means for continuously moving said receptacle means;

means for firmly holding said vegetable in said receptacle means aftersaid vegetable is horizontally disposed with extended ends; and

means for trimming said extended ends from said vegetable.

t UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3,621,900 Dated November 23, 1971 Inventor) Walter E. Rood It iscertified that error appears in the above-identified patent and thatsaid Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 4, line 69, change "63" to 83 Signed and sealed this brth day oJuly 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDL'JARD IVLFLETCHER, JR. ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attestng OfficerGommsadone1n of Patents FORM PO-IDSO (iO-69] uscoMM-Dc soave-P69 a u r.nnvnrnnnn nnmnnn nrnrr ma. n n

1. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimming vegetablescomprising: a plurality of receptacle means mounted on a continuoushorizontal conveyor means for randomly receiving and holding saidvegetables; means for automatically placing said vegetables into saidreceptacle means; means for orienting said vegetables in each of saidreceptacle means wherein said vegetables are horizontally disposed suchthat each end of said vegetable extends beyond said receptacle means,said orienting means comprising a means for vibrating said vegetables insaid receptacle means; and means for trimming said extended ends fromsaid vegetables.
 2. An apparatus for automatically orienting andtrimming vegetables as in claim 1 wherein: said receptacle meanscomprises a depression and wherein said depression is shaped such thatthe most stable positions for said vegetables is horizontal inorientation.
 3. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimmingvegetables as in claim 2 wherein the shape of said depression generallyconforms with the shape of said vegetable.
 4. An apparatus forautomatically orienting as in claim 3 wherein said receptacle means areinterchangeable so as to accommodate vegetables of varying sizes andshapes.
 5. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimmingvegetables as in claim 1 further comprising: means for firmly holdingsaid vegetable in said receptacle means after said vegetable isorientated.
 6. An apparatus for automatically orienting and trimmingvegetables comprising: receptacle means for receiving and holding saidvegetables, said receptacle means comprising a depression generallyshaped to conform with the shape of said vegetables such that the moststable position for said vegetable is horizontal in orientation; meansfor automatically randomly placing said vegetables into said receptaclemeans; first means for vibrating said vegetables during said automaticplacing; second means for vibrating said vegetables in said receptaclewherein said vegetables are horizontally disposed such that each end ofsaid vegetable extends beyond said receptacle means; conveying means forcontinuously moving said receptacle means; means for firmly holding saidvegetable in said receptacle means after said vegetable is horizontallydisposed with extended ends; and means for trimming said extended endsfrom said vegetable.